I’ve always loved the entire Christmas season. From decorating the tree, looking at the beautiful homes lit up with Christmas lights to seeing someone you care about face light up, when they open that one special gift and let us not forget helping those less fortunate than us. Christmas is so much fun. Here is a list of ideas and traditions that I do with loved ones.
- Turn your children’s pictures into Christmas a ornament. I find this to be a great way to build memories and it’s easy to do. Just go to Wal-Mart with your child’s Christmas photo or photo with Santa and for starting at $10 they will make it a ornament. You can also do this on-line at Wal-Mart.com or for a little more money Shutterfly. Each year when you decorate your tree, you will be able to hang ornaments of all past pictures.
2. Make ornaments/buy new ornament
You can do this many different ways. You can make them out of paper, felt, clay (with one of these clay recipes). If you’re not into crafts, you can take the kids out shopping each year to pick a new ornament for the tree.
3. Drive around and look at Christmas lights on houses/Christmas lights scavenger hunt
Everyone loves Christmas lights. Take a trip in the car and drive around looking at the beautiful lights. Have older children? Want a challenge? Turn it into a scavenger hunt. Type up a list of things to find while looking at lights. Here are some ideas, Santa Claus, Sled, Reindeer, Wreath, Nativity Scene, Candy Cane, Christmas Tree, Elf, etc…
4. Bake and Decorate Cookies – Need I say more, who doesn’t love Christmas cookies.
5. Sing Christmas Carols while decorating.
6. Have the kids make their own Christmas cards to send to special loved ones.
7. Build a gingerbread house
8. Have an Elf on the Shelf
9. Night Before Christmas Box
Make up a box of all things needed on the night before Christmas or for Christmas morning. You can put pajamas, mug with a bag of hot chocolate and marshmallows, Christmas book, Christmas movie, slippers, family game in the box. For older children you can add things like perfume/cologne/ hair accessories, socks or anything that they may use in their night-time or morning routine.
10. Candy Cane Hunt
I actually saw this on Pinterest and thought it was cute. You can hide candy canes around the house on Christmas morning and have the kids search for them.
11. Make reindeer food and leave cookies for Santa
Click here for a great reindeer food recipe. You can also leave whoopers candy around where you left the reindeer food, so they kids can see the reindeer poop left behind.
12. Do a community service project.
I feel that it’s very important for kids to help others especially during the holidays. Talk to your kids about different ways to help others. Let them decide who they should help. Some ideas are bringing food to an animal shelter, make little gifts for seniors, make a care package for a solider abroad, drop off a gift to a homeless shelter, the possibilities are endless.
13. Santa Footprints
This is a fun way to show the kids that Santa was here. There are a couple of ways you can do this. One way is to spread wax paper or parchment paper on the table. Sprinkle a good helping of flour or powdered sugar over the paper. Stamp a men’s boot into the flour or powered sugar and then stamp it on the floor, so it looks like footprints. Another way to make footprints is to put the boot on the floor and sprinkle the flour or powered sugar around it. Another fun idea to prove that Santa was here is to have the kids place flour or powered sugar on a baking tray and put in the fire-place (no on or hot of course), then mom or dad can make boot prints in on the tray. When they kids wake up they can look and see that Santa really did come down the chimney.
14. Celebrate St. Nicks Day
The feast of St. Nicholas is celebrated in 12/6. On the eve of St. Nicholas Day 12/5 place your child’s shoes by the front door. Have the kids leave their Christmas list in their shoes. In the morning they will find that St. Nicholas took their list and left them a nice treat.
15. Have an advent calendar and do a 25 days to Christmas countdown. click here to find out daily activities you can do as a family to celebrate the holidays.
16. The most important tradition is to take a breath and enjoy the season. Sometimes we get so busy during the holidays preparing for the special day that we look over the little things. Remember that kids are only kids once and only for a little while. Don’t take any time you have for granted. Enjoy your kids, take lots of pictures and make memories.
Have a wonderful holiday!
